Do massage guns really work?

Massage guns became very popular during lockdown when people couldn’t get access to regular massages and physios.  I’ve heard people speaking about them, I’ve seen them in clients’ homes and I’m always seeing adverts and videos for them, but do they actually work?

My first thoughts were that they would just hurt and wouldn’t really do the muscles any good by pounding and hammering into them.  Much like the commonly mistaken idea that sports massage should hurt, no pain no gain, I believe that owners were using the guns in much the same way.  And I wasn’t far wrong.  Many clients who bought one have commented that they did hurt, they weren’t sure how to use it and as a result many of them are sitting in cupboards now collecting dust.

 

How does Vibration Therapy work?

Vibrations happen in our body all the time when we are running, hitting a tennis ball, going downstairs and our body has developed ways to protect our bones and soft tissues, dampening the vibrations a bit like shock absorbers in a car.

In the same way that a shock absorber will compress and expand, the muscles make cyclical actions of small eccentric and concentric muscle contractions.

What does that mean?

Well, to understand an eccentric and concentric muscle contraction, imagine a simple bicep curl.  Holding a weight in an upturned hand with your arm straight by your side, bend at the elbow and bring the weight closer to your shoulder.  This is a concentric contraction.  Now imagine lowering the weight slowly back down again, controlling the movement, and this is an eccentric contraction.  The concentric contraction acts in a similar way to the shock absorber which will compress to absorb a bump and the eccentric contraction is the controlled expansion ready to react to and absorb other bumps and vibrations in the road.

The shock absorbers make the car journey more enjoyable and our muscles make our movement and interaction with the world safer, comfortable and more durable.

Vibration Therapy can take a number of forms from a whole body vibration plate that is stood upon, to a hand held massage gun.  Research on vibration therapy is very broad and because the body is so complex, more often than not, research raises more questions than it answers.  An article from the British Journal of Medicine brings together a lot of research to show the potential benefits of vibration therapy which are:

  • Temporarily improve flexibility
  • Release growth hormones which helps with repair after injury or exercise
  • Increase uptake of oxygen in targeted soft tissue
  • Decrease cortisol (stress hormone)
  • Improve bone density
  • Relieve pain
  • Improve lymphatic flow

 

Not just for sport

The majority of people I know who have bought a massage gun are runners and people training for fitness, but vibration therapy has many potential uses and is not just for those in training.  Who doesn’t enjoy sitting in a vibrating massage chair or slipping into a warm bubbling hot tub?  Using a hand held vibration massage gun can be a fantastic way to relax after being hunched over a computer all day.  It can be a really handy tool to have in or around your desk if you find it hard to get up and away from the computer regularly.  Using it during the day in shorts bursts in the middle of the day can help to reduce stress and activate tense muscles and reduce pain in the shoulders. 

 

Does Vibration therapy work?

My opinion is that, it does have its uses and benefits when used correctly.  Personally, I find that used in short bursts, it can relax tense muscles and also help me to relax in general.  Some research does show physical changes to the tissue can enhance performance in sport.  

 

How to use a massage gun

 I find that the trick to using a massage gun is to change the angle of the gun when pressed on the required muscle. Rather than pushing as hard as you can into the area you are working on which can be painful and tiring, especially if you have quite a big heavy gun, start with the head of the gun going across the muscle instead of going head on.  This will loosen the superficial layers and as that starts to work you can then start to increase the angle and steadily increase the depth. 

Move the gun along the length of the muscle and across finishing with strokes moving from the extremity of the muscle to a central point, for example if you are working on your thigh, start above the knee and move up towards the groin area.  This is to aid lymphatic flow in the direction of the lymph nodes to clear away any waste  products. 

Use the gun between 5 and 10 minutes before or after exercise  and listen to your body.  It should not be painful. 

The massage gun that I purchased is the Renpho Mini.  I chose this as it was the right price point, £89.99 from Amazon, it was a weight that I would find easier to use while still having a decent handle on it to reach areas on the back and it has the accessories that I thought would be the most versatile and beneficial.  If you are thinking of purchasing a gun, please get in touch if you would like to chat about your needs and what might work best for you.   

You may also experience my massage gun in your treatment.  If your muscles are feeling particularly tight and stuck in a contracted state, I will use the Renpho to stimulate the muscle and get it moving which quickens the process of softening and loosening the fascia and more superficial layers of tissue to allow me to get deeper with manual therapy with less pain and less time, maximising your time on the table.   

When not to use Vibration therapy

If used incorrectly vibration can have detrimental effects and there are a number of cases where vibration therapy should not be used: sensitive/ broken, inflamed skin, over varicose veins, tumour sites, fractures, kidney or bladder stones, pacemakers, pregnancy, arrhythmia, seizures, acute thrombosis or hernia, migraines, severe diabetes.  This is not an exclusive list so if in doubt, please consult with your doctor before use of vibration therapy.